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2015.10.30 - The Phantom of the Republic
The Republic has stood for almost exactly a century. Thousands of people have passed through the once marbled and gilded lobby and watched cinematic fantasies unfold in tones of silver and later Technicolor brilliance. For long years the theater has been abandoned to the memories and echoes of the past. And some of those echoes are more lingering than others. Tonight, though they are gone for the day, the evidence of workmen is everywhere, in scaffolds that have been erected against the walls and patches of flooring and wall space that are in various stages of removal or repair. The tomb-like silence and peace of the theater has been disturbed and the entire building seems to be struggling out of deep, still dreaming, back towards life and light. Scott looks around, having arrived with Stiles, finding the door unlocked, which suggests that Ethan or Derek are around somewhere. "They bought a theater? Really? what are they even going to do with it?" He shakes his head, somewhere between envious at the idea of just buying an old building that has been a part of the town for so long, even if it was disused, and appalled at the perceived waste. He looks sideways at Stiles and says, "Is Derek cracking up or something?" Rolling his eyes a bit, Stiles says, "Dude, they bought it 'cause it's /cool/... and 'cause the pack needs a hangout. We can't keep having pack meetings in your /mom's/ house, especially not now that we've expanded. This place is a great investment! And we can totally have movie nights!" Grinning from ear to ear, Stiles is clearly enjoying the whole concept quite a bit. He claps Scott on the back and says, "Sure, it's not as fancy as your pals up north, but it's a cool place. And it's better than just letting it sit and rot, right?" He pauses, tilting his head, and says thoughtfully, "Hey, you ever notice how many just, like... /random/ abandoned buildings we have in this town? It's seriously strange." Ethan Carver leads Oliver in from the street a few minutes later, grinning from ear to ear. "And the whole place is gonna be restored to Gilded Age glory! There'll be marble all over the lobby, and big chandeliers, giltwork everywhere. Gonna cost a fortune, but it'll be so worth it. I've got the lawyers applying for grants and stuff, since this is technically a historic landmark and all. Not many of these grand old movie palaces left, ya know." Then he notices Scott and Stiles, and his grin brightens further still. "Hey guys! Have you met Ollie yet? He's...." Blinking, he looks toward the closet Wyatt is stepping out of. "Um...hey?" Wait, there are people in here? Having found his way into the building (don't ask how) about ten minutes prior to the arrival of Stiles and Company, Soo Park has been wandering around as silent as a mouse, enjoying himself in the abandoned building, simply poking about here and there. Hearing voices, he pokes his head out of the theater, proper, eyebrows raised. "Um... So... hi?" The voices of the small crowd bounce back off the walls and echo from the vaulted ceiling so far overhead, but oddly flat and slightly distorted, as though the very atmosphere the theater discourages laughter and conversation. It is noticeably chill, perhaps even a bit more so than outside and the sound of the high winds outside are just barely audible, along with the creaking you'll get with any old building on a night when those high winds blow. Like the sounds of muted groans from the very boards and timbers of the structure, protesting at the weight of old memories and secrets. Scott shakes his head at Stiles and lets out an amused snort. "My 'pals' up north are ... well, I don't take the way they live for granted. And I ... guess I get it. It just feels weird. On the other hand, we're superheroes! We even have a secret ...." He sees Wyatt and his eyebrows go up as the gives the young boy a nod. "Um, Hey." He glances at Stiles as though wondering what's up there. And then Ethan and Oliver arrive. Scott shakes his head, "If you guys say so. It's your money." He nods to Oliver, "Hey, dude. Nice to see you're all in one piece." And then another stranger appears. Scott grins ruefully at Stiles. "Ok, scratch the secret part." Stiles looks a little startled to see Wyatt appearing, but he recovers quickly. "Oh, hey," he says to Wyatt, giving him a chin-up nod in greeting. He gives Scott an apologetic shrug, and then Ethan's arrived with his guest, and Stiles raises both eyebrows. "Seriously. 'Secret hideout' is all great until you've got no secrets left, I guess." He gives Oliver a nod and says, "Hey--I know you. You're that kid that just moved in down the street from me, right?" And then there's Soo. Stiles glances up, blinking, and says, "Seriously?" He glances at Scott. "We apparently suck at 'secrets.'" A beat, a thoughtful look. A shrug. "Business as usual, I guess." Wyatt Halliwell speaks up again, then, "Sorry, I didn't know anybody'd be here. I was just checking things out... there was, um, kinda trouble here a few weeks ago and wanted to make sure it wasn't happening again. I can leave..." He, too, glances to Soo, and then back to Stiles and his friends. Ethan Carver jumps a bit in surprise when yet another voice sounds, quickly turning toward Soo. "Oh, hey. Er." He glances to Stiles and Scott, brows drawn together. "Are the workers just leaving the doors unlocked every night? 'Cuz we might wanna have a word with them. Uh, anyway! Scott, Stiles, this is Ollie." His eyes suddenly sparkle with mischief as he steps closer to his packmates, eyes fixed on Scott. Lowering his voice just a bit, he adds, "Wait'll you smell him." Whatever that means! Oliver gives Scott a quizzical look. "Why wouldn't I be in one piece?" He shrugs his shoulders and adds "It's nice to see you again." Stiles' question is met with an eager nod. "Yeah, I just moved to Woodbine. You live on Woodbine?" He sounds almost ecstatic at meeting someone who lives so close to his new home. In fact, with so many strangers in one place, he was bound to make new friends. At least that's how his logic works. All the business about 'secrets' and 'hideouts' seems to completely go over his head. Such a cool place is meant to be shared, isn't it? He doesn't find it odd at all that people are coming out of different parts of the place, closets included. He completely misses Ethan's muttered comment, because he's focusing on advertising himself. In a voice loud enough to carry to everyone in the room, he says "So yeah, I'll be enrolling in Beacon Hills High very soon. We just have to clear up the matter of my records." "... Shitballs, does somebody own this place, Stiles?" Soo asks, eyebrows still raised. "It's so cool in there, the balcony's all... busted. And bloody. Why is it bloody?" He pauses, then head tilts. "If it's private property... I mean... I can leave if you want..." He hugs himself in an absent gesture, making himself seem smaller, somehow. He looks down at the ground, clearly crestfallen for being somewhere he's not supposed to be. Scott gives his friend a wry glance and then shakes his head as Wyatt speaks. His brows go up and he asks, "Trouble?" And then, looking around, "Are you here with anybody?" His tone is somewhere between mildly concerned and slightly disapproving. Part of being the alpha. When he's on duty, which is all the time in Beacon Hills, he's the big brother. Everybody's brother. "I'm Scott, by the way. That's Stiles." He nods towards his best friend. "Don't ask." And then, pointing at the other two he knows, he says, "The big one is Ethan, the skinny one is Ollie." He glances at Soo, "You I don't know." But at the other teen's expression, he tries to play peacemaker, "But I'm sure you weren't expecting the place to, you know, be occupied." To Ethan, he nods and says, sotto voce, "I know. Believe me." And to Oliver he adds, "The last time I saw you, you'd just taken a header over the handlebars of your bike and dented my mom's trash bins." As Scott speaks, the chill seems to become a little more intense and those with supernatural hearing get an echo of scuffed footsteps or something like it, coming from or going into the auditorium. Stiles grins at Scott and says, "I do like that, though... superheroes, heh." He shakes his head at Wyatt and says, "Nah, it's fine. You're here already, so it's not like it's a big deal either way. Plus, good to see you. Saved anyone from vampires lately?" He chuckles some, then stops and gives Ethan a /Dude, seriously, smell him?!/ sort of look. Still, he nods to Ollie and says, "Yep. So, we're neighbors. Cool." Noting Soo, he smirks a little. "Ethan, his brother, and my boyfri--well, uh, technically, my /other/ boyfriend, and yeah, it's complicated--Derek own it. They bought it all together." Finally looking back to Scott, he says, "Wyatt's cool. He helped me out a while ago. And... yeah, there was this whole thing that Lance and I were dealing with... Ethan and Liam were there, too." He shakes his head. "Long story." Then, glancing around, he asks, "Hey, uh... anyone else /feel/ that? I'm... uh. Well, my Spidey sense is kinda tingling." Wyatt Halliwell smiles again, relaxing a bit, but shakes his head. "By myself." He then adds, "I'm Wyatt, nice to meet you. All of you. Well, I already know Stiles." Grinning, he shakes his head to Stiles, "Not lately." He then blinks, turning and looking towards... well, most would just see empty air. "Um, did you know there's a ghost here? At least, I think it's a ghost... or do you see that guy carrying a dead body too?" Ethan Carver ahs, nodding as he glances back to Oliver. "Oh right, you did say you'd bet Scott, I forgot. Well cool then." He slams his arm around Oliver's shoulders, pulling him close in a friendly-and-totally-not-creepy sort of way. "We're all gonna be such great friends!" Still grinning, he turns to Wyatt and Soo, waving his free hand. "Hey, how ya doin'? Wait, did you say dead body?" Frowning, his arm fall from Ollie's shoulders, as he turns to look around the auditorium. "Aw man, now there's ghosts, too? Like kanimas and vampires and super-mega-werewolves weren't enough?" Oliver's jaw drops open at Scott's words. "Oh my God, those were your mom's!? I thought they were some other person's. I'm so sorry." He seems a bit upset at the idea that he damaged the property of someone he knew. Sorta knew. Rubbing his arms, he adds "And yes, no concussion or anything, I'm fine. I look forward now." Usually. He listens with rapt attention to Stiles, his new neighbor and potential friend, explaining Important Stuff. He doesn't get most of it, judging from the look on his face. He doesn't seem to mind Ethan's arm around him. All of a sudden he stiffens, the hair on the back of his neck standing up. He gets goosebumps as he starts wriggling in Ethan's grip. "Ethan, maybe we shouldn't be here. I- I'm getting a really weird vibe." In a quieter voice, he says "Stiles is right, something is seriously off. We should go. Like, now." Once the ghost is mentioned and Ethan's arm falls, Oliver grabs it and pulls. "Come on, we should get outta here before something seriously bad happens." When Scott speaks to him, the skinny Korean-American kid perks up, moving quickly across the room to stand in front of him... just a little too close for casual behavior. "I'm Soo Park. New student." He all but flutters his lashes at the taller boy, before whipping around at Stiles, one finger pointing at the other boy accusingly. "No wonder I can't get a date, you're hogging all the men for yourself!" Soo crosses his arms over his chest in a huff, though he's smiling at everyone, his earlier pouting apparently forgotten. Once he's closer to Oliver, his eyes narrow slightly, and he sniffs the air curiously... and then he's hearing the scuffing sounds, his head whipping in that direction, pupils dilating as he sniffs at the air. "What the hell..." His head tilts and his eyes narrow, his body perfectly still, tensed and ready to pounce something, a soft, prolonged growl escaping his throat instinctually. Scott's eyes narrow and both Stiles and Ethan will recognize his 'serious business' expression as he looks at Wyatt and then towards the auditorium. He glances aside at Stiles and says, "Have you ever noticed how nothing good happens when we go looking for dead bodies?" He blinks at the sudden glitter and rainbow hurricane of flirting and gives Soo a 'really? right now?!' look. With a sigh, he says to Ethan, "Our secret ... well, our lair, anyway. Our responsibility." And then he's striding towards the auditorium. Because this is his life. He's halfway running TOWARDS the ghost story, rather than away from it, like a sane person would. "Wait, ghosts?" Stiles says, looking to Wyatt. Suddenly, all the getting-to-know-you banter is dropped, since haunted theaters are much more pressing. He does manage a grim smile at Scott's comment, then smirks in spite of the tension and shrugs. "I dunno, we went into the woods to find a dead body, and you turned out okay." He pats Scott on the shoulder, then turns to step cautiously toward the source of the hauntingy stuff. "Well," he says half under his breath, "it's worth a shot." He stretches his arms wide, raising them high, and calls out, "Hey, ghost! You are /officially/ being served with an eviction notice. Get your ectoplasmic ass out of here before we get seriously Ghostbusters on it!" He glances back at the others with a half-smirk. "Maybe that'll get its attention, huh?" Wyatt Halliwell blinks to Ethan, "Kanimas?" Apparently, that's the only thing Ethan mentions that he doesn't know about. He looks back to Scott, though, and then Stiles, grinning at the latter's attempt at the eviction speech. "Might work!" He turns and follows after Scott. There's no fear to him, at all. He might be young, but ghosts don't seem to scare him in the slightest. Ethan Carver's eyes suddenly glow a bright blue, as he continues to look around with supernaturally enhanced vision -- surely everyone else is too occupied looking for the ghost to notice Ethan's sudden eye color change, right? "Uh, Stiles? I dunno if you've ever seen a horror movie, like, ever, but in every one I've ever seen, shouting to get the ghost's attention never ends happily." Shifting his eyes back to normal, he glances at Wyatt with a small grin. "Uh, kanimas are like werewolves that didn't quite turn out right. Long story. Where's this ghost you're seeing, and why's it hauling around a dead body? Is the body also a ghost? Like, a dead ghost? How does that even work, and why am I even having this conversation outside of Eichen House?" Oliver stares at Soo and his interaction with Scott and Stiles. "Well, that's different," he says to himself. It only momentarily distracts him, however, from the more pressing issue: supernatural craziness. As he watches Scott move with determination, he calls out "Scott, is your sense of direction haywire or something? The exit is -that- way." He points to where they came in. And then Stiles starts yelling, apparently to the ghost, and Oliver slaps his forehead. "Ethan, you never once told me your friends were crazy. I mean, seriously, that kind of warning would have been appreciated." Closet Kid takes off after Scott, leading Oliver to just sigh with exasperation. Ethan's words about the supernatural earn a muttered "I swear, I'm going to kill my parents for moving me here. Nobody and nothing that happens is normal." "Nothing in this room is exactly normal." Soo states over his shoulder to Oliver as he's walking after Scott, doing a mini sprint to actually put himself just ahead of the young man... right where he can be underfoot in a dangerous situation, of course. "I was just in there, didn't see anything..." At least he's not winding around Scott's legs. While others look frightened or angry? Soo looks curious and vaguely excited. As Scott and Wyatt reach the door to the auditorium, they can see, thanks to the strings of lights left by the workers. Rows and rows of empty seats, their velvet fabric frayed and faded and stuffing coming out of them like abandoned, one beloved stuffed animals, fill the cavernous room and the peeling remnants of gold and white facades leave cracked strips and blisters along the walls. There are two balconies to either side of the raised stage that holds the large, dirty, off-white screen, flanked and framed by what would be a Saudi prince's wealth in silk and velvet drapes at today's prices, mostly mildewed and filthy now. One of of the balcony boxes is shattered and broken looking, scaffolding around it showing that work has already started, the other mostly intact. The room is filled by a low susurrus, like the whispering of corpses, dried-up tongues telling secrets that no living man can hear and stay sane. The sound fades, like a crowd stilling before a movie starts as the small group enters the auditorium proper. Stiles winks at Wyatt, then rolls his eyes a little at Ethan. "I'd say that immortality has made me bold, but c'mon, let's be honest. I'd have done that anyway." Entering the auditorium, he looks around the appropriately creepy space, looking vaguely disappointed. "Well, if Casper's hanging out, looks like he's got stage fright," he concludes, resting his hands on his hips. He glances over at Scott, raising his eyebrows, and says, "See, this is why we need proton packs. Just sayin'." He doesn't seem troubled by the others' caution, even grinning a bit at Soo. "Ghosts! Compared to everything else we've had to deal with, are they even really that scary anymore?" Wyatt Halliwell stops in his tracks as they enter the auditorium, eyes very wide as he looks at the 'empty' seats. "Wow.. do ghosts have town meetings? There's gotta be hundreds of them here!" He looks up to the intact balcony. "They're all looking up there." Ethan Carver throws an arm around Oliver again, grinning impishly. "Aw, where's your sense of adventure? Ghosts can't actually hurt you or anything, right? They just wander around being all ghosty, trying to get people's attention. Didn't you ever see that old TV show with what's-her-name? What was it called again, the Busty Ghost Whisperer?" But as he drags Ollie into the auditorium and hears Wyatt's words, Ethan's grin suddenly fades. "Wait, there's how many ghosts?" Eyes glowing again, he glances around, then turns to look up where Wyatt is indicating, squinting a bit as if that will help him see the unseen. Oliver's opinion on the matter appears to be ignored as Ethan drags him towards the auditorium where everyone else is headed. He's squirming and shaking his head. "No, you don't get it, there is something seriously WRONG with this place. It's getting worse," he whines, his hands coming up to clutch his head. As they reach the threshold and Wyatt talks about a room full of ghosts, he starts to tremble. "Ghosts can totally hurt you, haven't you ever seen Ghost or any of those other movies? All they have to do is hate you enough and they can make things happen." Okay, that's new. Ghosts. Huh. When Wyatt points to the intact balcony, Soo just shrugs to himself, shoves the sleeves on his sweater up a bit higher, glances at the balcony, then the ground, then the balcony again... and leaps. It's a graceful arch that carries him up onto the side of the balcony, where he balances easily in a crouch, peering into the darkness, his eyes faintly glowing amber as he does. "I don't get what the big deal is, it's just a balcony..." The chill becomes more intense as the strings of work lights left by the construction team, hanging off the scaffolding and in lines across the high ceiling, start to pop one after the other, like a string of firecrackers or gunshots. As they do, the auditorium darkens and the projector snaps to life, despite being without power and broken for at least the last decade. The light from the projector illuminates dust motes in the air as the silver screen flickers to life. The film is The Curse of the Werewolf and as it plays, a pair of ghostly figures fade into being on the balcony, stage left. Both are teenaged boys, dressed in letterman jackets, button down shirts and slacks. The wardrobe and hair styles give a hint that they are contemporary with the movie, which came out in the late 50s or early 60s. As the lights pop, Scott's eyes flash red and his features shift, becoming more brutal and bestial, with pointed ears and pronounced canines, as well as a flatter, more animalistic nose. He growls as he looks up at the balcony, not seeing the threat yet, but knowing by the way the hair is standing up on the back of his neck that something is coming. First Oliver's freaking out, then Soo's pouncing--like, wow, Catwoman on crack pouncing--and then Scott wolfs out. Yeah, okay, Stiles is sufficiently concerned. He rolls his shoulders, popping his neck a bit, and says, "All right, guess it's game face time." Then he reaches under his coat, which clearly has nothing much under it, to defy all laws of spatial physics by drawing forth... a heavy metal baseball bat. What, you were expecting a sword? Hefting his bat into a good smacking position, Stiles says, "Okay, let's do this!" Wyatt Halliwell looks to Stiles, and says, "Um.. don't think a bat will work on ghosts. You need to find their bones or whatever's holding them from moving on. Well, there's a spell that works too, but you have to be a ghost too to cast it. Besides, I don't know if they're ang..." He trails off and looks around, and back to the balcony. Not realizing others can see those on the balcony, he says, "There's two boys up there, and the ghosts down here /really/ don't like one of them." Ethan Carver scowls darkly, arm dropping from Oliver's shoulders, as he steps protectively in front of the smaller teen. His features shift as well, though not as dramatically as Scott's -- his eyes continue to glow, his canines elongate, and claws sprout from his fingertips. Also, for some unknown reason, he rips his tee (on sale now at Macy's!) down the center, tossing the shreds aside and leaving him topless. A low growl builds in his chest, and his blue eyes widen a bit when Soo makes that impossible leap. "Okay, no fair!" he grumbles, glancing to Scott for orders. "All my cool superpowers require Aiden, and of course this is the one night he actually decides to do his own laundry." Oliver's eyes to widen slightly at Soo's leap. Other people can do that, too? And then Scott shifts and looks decidedly a little less human. He'd never seen a werewolf before, not in the flesh. It's one thing to know people are something supernatural. Watching it happen is an entirely different matter. It was eerie. "Is that it? Shouldn't he like get taller and furrier and stuff?" Stiles' baseball bat does nothing to reassure him in the least. "Stiles, he has a point. They're ghosts, what exactly do you intend to whack with that?" Wyatt's words do bring some measure of comfort. "Wait, so, the ghosts are ignoring us? They're interested in someone else? Like, other ghosts?" This was comforting news, at least to Oliver. He looks in the direction of the balcony and spots the 'ghosts' in question. "Wait, those are ghosts? How come I can see them?" As Ethan steps in front of him protectively, Oliver blinks. "Wow, you too? No fur?" He frowns, looking almost disappointed. The slender Asian teen glances over his shoulder at the group, shrugging innocently. "Ten years of gymnastics!" Because that totally explains that insane flat footed leap. He grins, dragging himself up onto the railing... where he spots the strange young men. To his credit, he doesn't lose his balance, crouched where he is. "They're not ghosts, just... teenage boys. Probably came up here to be alone." Soo drops down onto the balcony, smiling at the boys. "Hey, it's okay. This really isn't a safe place to be right now, though, so maybe... go play Danny and Rule 63 Sandy somewhere else?" Despite Soo being right there next to them, they don't seem to hear or see him. The two boys look around and then give each other shy smiles. They move closer, while on the screen, a black and white full moon rises, and in the silver-tinted shadows their lips meet. After a moment, the taller boy fades away and the red-headed, pale teenager is left alone. His expression is pained and apprehensive, as though he knows something bad is coming. He makes eye contact with Soo and mouths a word. Perhaps it's 'No!' or 'Go!' And then his features smooth out to a happy, thoughtful smile and his eyes go softer and peaceful, as though he's locked back in that happy moment. Until another form fades into being. The man looks like an older, blurred and weathered version of the teenager. Obviously his father or uncle. His expression is furious, almost demonic seeming. That impression is enhanced by the fact that the figure's eyes glow like orange-red coals in a dying fire. He reaches out and wraps his hands, stretched inhumanly long and thin, around the neck of his victim and starts to squeeze, growling, "Not my son!" The teenager struggles, but slowly, his movements become less coordinated and the light starts to fade from his eyes. Scott's eyes are glowing read as he snarls and charges. He can't make that kind of leap, but he does jump a good six or eight feet to grab hold of the velvet curtains beside the screen and claws his way up quickly, using more than human strength and speed to get high enough to make a jump for the box, trying to stop a murder that seems to have already happened from happening again. He leaps from the curtain towards the dark figure, obviously planning on tackling it. Which is when that figure lifts that strangely blurred, shadow wrapped head and their eyes meet, orange and red. The ghost screams a single word, loud enough to shake the room and send plaster falling. "NO!" And with the force of that scream, it lashes out, catching the young alpha in mid-air and hurling him the entire width of the theater to slam into the scaffolding at the other side with a terrible sounding impact. And after Scott falls to the weathered carpet on the floor, the mass of steel pipes and wooden planks collapses onto him with a thunderous noise. Stiles rolls his eyes a little, saying, "Dude, how many times do I have to say this? /You've/ got magical werewolf powers. /I've/ got a bat." But then, as the ghostly drama begins to play out, Stiles chokes up a little on his bat--and was that a tiny arc of electricity dancing along it? Perhaps, after all, it's not /just/ a bat. He grits his teeth as the older-looking apparition begins attacking the younger one, and then he bolts--breaking into a run, then a sprint, to get out to the stairs so he can reach the balcony, too. Scott jumping into the fray just makes Stiles push himself harder, and all of a sudden he's moving with speed nobody's ever seen from him before. Maybe all he's got is a bat, but dammit, that ghost /clearly/ needs bustin'! Wyatt Halliwell's eyes widen as Scott is thrown, and he reaches a hand up, but it's too late, Scott hits the far wall. He gets an angry look on his face and vanishes in a swirl of blue glowing orbs, reappearing on the balcony. Raising a hand, he blasts at the ghost that just threw Scott with a wave of telekinetic force. "Stay put," Ethan growls to Oliver over his shoulder, then glances to Wyatt as well. "You too, kid." He doesn't have the Alpha Voice anymore, but even a Beta can be pretty intimidating to a normal human. Of course, there aren't any normal humans in the room, but Ethan tries anyway, putting a little extra gruffness in his voice. Not waiting to see how (un)effective his efforts are (and a moment before Wyatt vanishes in a swirl of orbs), he makes a dash toward the same curtains Scott scaled, his own leap only slightly more impressive (helps to have longer legs to start with). He scrambles up to the balcony's railing just as the Alpha goes flying across the auditorium. "No!" he snarls, swiping his claws at the ghost's throat. "No! LET HIM GO!" A low growl escapes from Soo before he can stop it, and he's suddenly hissing, a disturbing and menacing sound, his eyes going from faintly glowing to full amber-golden glare, the teen's ears elongating slightly, his nails curving into wickedly sharp points. When Scott's sent flying, Soo snarls, coming in low and fast, fangs bared and claws digging into the ground as he rushes, for the moment, on all fours, seeking to break the ghost's hold on the teen via a good old fashioned pounce and claw. Oliver stares at the scene taking place on the balcony, mouth agape. "What the Hell?" He can't make sense of it, but watches as Scott takes off for the balcony...only to be thrown backwards and buried under rubble. His hands fly up to cover his mouth and his eyes widen in shock. "Scott!" he calls out, but there's nothing he can do. Not that he's much help in this kind of a situation in the first place. As everyone begins making their way towards the balcony (Wyatt wins for most original travel method, of course), Oliver decides to do the only thing someone in his position can - stay out of it. Yes, Ethan told him to stay put. But he wasn't going to get involved in any fighting, so... With that in mind, he looks to the mountain of debris Scott was buried under. With a leap similar to Soo's, he makes it to a wall and kicks off it, reaching the rubble pile in two 'bounces.' "Scott?" He listens for any traces of sound from the Alpha. The dark figure seems genuinely shocked that the supernatural youngsters should interfere. This scene has played so many times since the first time that it is simply unbelievable that anything would interrupt. But they do. Wyatt's telekinetic blast unbalances the figure and it ripples like a sheet in a high wind, black bits flying off and fading into nothingness. And then Ethan's claws are ripping at a ghostly throat and Soo bodily (and bloodily, albeit black, ectoplasmic blood) breaks the hold. The red-headed teenager's eyes come back into focus and he looks as shocked as his father as he regains true consciousness for the first time in ... many, many years. The combined assault sends the ghost topping back into the hall, at Stile's feet, seeming more than half solid, by the way the wounds are showing. Stiles pulls up short as the ghostly bully falls at his feet. He tilts his head to one side for a moment, sparing a split second to contemplate the moral quandary of brutalizing a dead guy, but this quickly passes. The asshole just chucked his best friend across a room, and he probably murdered whomever the ghost-boy is. Stiles hefts his bat, glaring down at the dark figure, and says, "Bad day to be you, Casper." With that, he brings the bat down in a vicious overhand swing, arcs of electricity now visibly dancing across it as the Quickening empowers the metal. He's also showing much greater levels of strength than usual--it's probably a really good thing that's not a living person, 'cause this is probably gonna leave a mark. Wyatt Halliwell, satisfied the ghost is being dealt with, (as much as possible without finding its bones, anyway), vanishes in a swirl of orbs again to reappear near where Scott was buried, and asks Oliver, "Can you hear him?" He raises his hand again and starts telekinetically lifting debris away. Ethan Carver drops off the railing into the balcony itself, still snarling deep in his throat, even though the malicious ghost seems to be down. "Are you okay?" he asks the teenager ghost, because that's what the good guys do, right? Ask the victim if he's okay, before leaping back into the fray. Ethan doesn't leap back into anything, however, glowing eyes darting between Soo and Stiles, before focusing on the unknown teen again. "Wait, are you a ghost or what?" Things like this never happened in the Alpha Pack, where it was all claw-claw-bite-claw, never bother asking questions. Russell blinks at Ethan and Soo and then winces as Stiles' mystically-charged bat impacts with Russ' father's ghostly skull and the entire apparition explodes into a cloud of furiously seething wisps that spiral up and out, vanishing into nothingness. His voice is rusty. He hasn't used it in a very long time, "I'm ... fine. Thank you. He won't be back for weeks. Maybe months. I think that's the first time he's been disrupted. It really hurts." His expression is grave as he says, "Um, I'm Russ. Russell Finstock." With an effort of will, the ghost's body shimmers a moment and he suddenly looks a lot more solid. The shifters can even catch a faint, very human scent. He holds out a hand to shake and says, "Thank you! All!" One thing in Oliver's favor, his hearing is fantastic. "He's alive," he says to Wyatt, nodding. "I can hear his heartbeat." As Wyatt begins lifting the debris away with telekinesis, Oliver doesn't even question it. He pitches in, moving a few pipes before reaching a series of boards. Frowning, he shifts his weight to one foot and with his other delivers a series of kicks that shatter a good number of the planks. "We'll get you out, don't worry," he says softly more to himself than anyone else. The activity on the balcony is completely outside of his scope right now. When Ghost Dad goes flying, so does Soo, immediately giving chase, swatting and tearing at the ghost to land in a roll near Stiles, eyes glowing brilliantly, his claws digging gouges into the floor as he goes sliding to a stop. He pants, eyes narrowed, then glowers at Stiles when the bat finds its home. "You killed my toy." He mutters, which is only slightly slurred by the sharp teeth plainly visible at the moment. And then he's back up on the balcony, as if he hadn't just lept from it, walking along the railing. "Don't mention it. Seriously. If my aunt finds out, she'll have puppies." The careful digging manages to uncover Scott, who was mostly sheltered when a tangle of pipes fell at an angle to deflect the worst of the impacts away from his body. Still, he's unconscious and battered looking, but breathing and doesn't look to have worse than some scrapes and bruises that his werewolf healing will take care of. Sooner or later. Stiles straightens up, looking a little off-balance after that brutal assault, and draws a sharp breath, drawing the back of one hand across his mouth as if in a gesture of collecting himself. Then Soo makes him smile, just a little, before he moves quickly to Scott's side. The bat vanishes into his coat again, and Stiles kneels beside his friend, reaching out to help support him. No offense to the ghost-boy, but friends come first. "Scott--hey, Scott! C'mon, dude, wake up. If you're concussed or something, your mom's gonna kill me!" When Scott doesn't immediately come around, though, Stiles glances over toward Russell. "Glad to see you looking less see-through," he observes. "So... any idea how to make Casper's exit a permanent one?" Wyatt Halliwell looks relieved at Oliver's words, and continues moving stuff until Scott's unburied. Then he crouches down, while Stiles supports Scott, and reaches out to place a hand over Scott's chest. A golden glow comes from under his hand, and Scott's injuries are healed. Ethan Carver blinks a few times at Russ, head cocking to one side. "Finstock? Like the coach? Are you related maybe?" Without waiting for a reply, he turns and leaps over the edge of the balcony, landing heavily on the floor below, then leaps into a sprint that takes him quickly to join the others at Scott's side. "Whoa, what're you doing?" he asks Wyatt, fists held at his sides. The kid doesn't -seem- to be hurting the Alpha, but still. Never hurts to be cautious around unknown magic...stuff. His eyes flick between Stiles and Oliver, then up to Soo, before quickly returning to Scott. Russ shakes his head and shrugs his shoulders, "Um, my Dad's brother was a football coach at school, but I think he's dead now." He stands as the others head to Scott and swallows heavily, looking at something they can't see, for the most part. After a moment, his form shimmers and he floats lightly down from the balcony and over to the group of people around Scott, looking only at the alpha. If ghosts could sweat when phased out of corporeal form, he would. He swallows and asks, "Is he alright?" And then, answering Stiles, "You can't get rid of him without destroying his bones and his anchor." Once Scott is uncovered, Oliver doesn't seem to know what to do. Stiles and Ethan rush over to tend to their friend, but its Wyatt who places a hand on Scott's chest. As a glow pulses between Wyatt's hand and Scott, he grunts out "Huh." Shrugging, he adds "Don't see that everyday." As the ghost appears right next to Scott, Oliver jumps. "What the-?" He was apparently paying so little attention to the events on the balcony that this is the first he's noticed Russ. Alone on the balcony railing, Soo takes a few easy steps along the thin surface before leaping down, twirling about in mid air to land on all fours in an easy, practiced motion. As he rises, his features slowly return to normal, his eyes losing their odd glow, the claws returning to normal human nails, and his teeth reducing in size. He moves silently, stalking up behind Oliver, only to pass him to glance down at Scott. "You just saw a ghost get bashed in the head by someone who stores a baseball bat... I'm pretty sure some drag queen wrote a song about him." He gives Stiles some serious side-eye, before finally noticing Ethan's shirtless. "It must be my birthday." Scott groans and his eyes open, slightly unfocused but tracking. More or less. "Bad flirting from the new guy. I must still by alive. Ow." He looks up at Stiles and Ethan, frowning slightly at the latter. "How did I get thrown halfway across town but you're the one without a shirt? "Bones, anchor, right," Stiles says, nodding. "And where are those?" And then Soo's casting some shade, and Stiles just rolls his eyes at him, only to grin as Scott comes to and is immediately hilarious. "Alive and still making bad jokes. Good sign! Casper the Asshole Ghost hit you pretty hard, but we knocked the ectoplasm outta him for you." He glances to Ethan, saying, "Help me get him into a seat or something, okay?" Russ gets a nod and a small smile, saying, "Scot'll be okay. How--uh, this might be a weird question to ask a dead guy, no offense, but--how're you doing?" Ethan Carver flashes a relieved grin, reaching down a hand to help Scott to his feet. "What can I say? Me pecs refused to be contained for long." He glances at Soo, giving his brows a quick waggle, flexing his muscles teasingly, because why not? Once Scott is safely upright, Ethan turns to Russ again. "Right, what Stiles said. Where do we find his bones and anchor...Wait, is he a ship captain? Why's he got an anchor, and what're we supposed to do with it when we find it?" The ghost actually smiles faintly at Stiles and nods. "You ... you don't know what you've done, do you? I was locked in that cycle for ... a long time. When I wasn't being summoned to do ... other things." He looks around the apparently empty theater with a guilty, haunted expression and then back to the teenagers. "Seriously. I'm me again! Free willed and everything!" He glances at the flexing Ethan and blushes, then starts making a point of looking the muscular young man in the eyes. "Um, no. It's a ghost thing. Most of us have remains that need to be destroyed, in a certain way, and an object or place that anchors us to this world. My dad's bones are the same place mine are, I suspect. He made sure he'd be a ghost to keep punishing me. And his anchor is ... here. This place. Just like mine." That's a lot of trust to place in strangers, but they just handed Russ back his freedom. If he had a life, they'd have saved it. Oliver looks at Soo, not sure what to make of the other boy or all the flirting going on. Instead, he squats next to Scott. "Does anything still hurt? Or did the magic make you better?" He backs away as Stiles and Ethan move to help Scott get up and into a seat, but stays close by. Then he takes a good, long look at Russell. "So... what exactly is all this about?" He waves up to indicate the balcony. Because he's clearly not following the sequence of events. "The big bad nasty is dea- well, gone. But he's not 100 percent gone yet until his bones have been found? And his anchor..." He pauses, something clicking. "Wait, his -anchor- has to be destroyed? And this is his anchor?" He looks sideways at Ethan. "Oh boy, this is really going to screw with your plans..." "It's not bad flirting, it's good humor. So... Is there anyone in this town who isn't, um... a werewolf or what I can only assume is a Magical Girl?" He glances at Stiles again, grinning. When Ethan starts flexing? "Oh, be still my heart." Soo says with an eyeroll, but he's smirking, all the same. Hey, enjoy the show, right? He tucks his hair behind his ears before looking with just a touch of concern at Russell. "So... Destroy the bones? What if... what if they wanna destroy yours, too? I mean... No offense, Carol Anne, but shouldn't you be going toward the light?" He pauses, then frowns at Stiles. "He... probably isn't going to get that reference." Oliver gets a look back, eyebrow raised. "Does the anchor need to be destroyed... or can it be cleansed?" Scott rolls his eyes at that flexing and says, "Save it for Liam." But his expression is amused. And he stops to look around and say, "And guys? You did a good job. A great job. Including you, Ollie. Thanks for helping get me out of that mess." He looks back at Russ and frowns, "You guys share the same anchor? So even if we leveled this place, you'd, um, re-die? Die again? Get deader? Something like that?" At the ghost's nod, he shakes his head and says, "Not an option." And then, looking back at Soo, he says, "Well, you're not a werewolf. And by the way you move and the claws, I'm guessing some kind of feline? I didn't know you guys came in different kinds, but I'm pretty sure you aren't a lion." "Magical girl? Seriously?" Stiles shakes his head, glad to see Scott steady on his feet, and gives a little shrug. "Hey, we're Team Beacon Hills. It's what we do, right?" Like Scott, he shakes his head in disapproval at the idea of razing the theater. "Well, that's out. No fair busting Russ just 'cause his dad's an ecto-ass." Ethan's flexing doesn't even get a comment or glance of disapproval. It's Ethan. It's just part of who he is, and Stiles hasn't seen reason to argue with that in a while now. "Well, Russ," he says with a nod, "Guess you're sort of honorarily on the team, at least as... like a mascot or something." He glances at Oliver. "We seem to be getting lots of those lately." Ethan Carver flashes another grin to Scott, giving his pecs one more flex, then turns to look Oliver over. "See? You're safe and sound, just like I promised." He glances at Russ again, still not quite sure what to make of the ghost, then suddenly leans over to sniff at Soo. No, seriously, he's sniffing the poor guy, nose almost-but-not-quite pressed against his neck. A moment later, he steps back with a wrinkled nose. "Definitely cat, Boss," he confirms, giving his head a quick shake. "But not a lion. More like...house cat?" His head cocks to one side, eyes scanning up and down the young man. "But not quite. I dunno what he is." His tongue plays lightly over his lower lip in a predatory sort of way. Cats and dogs, man. At Soo's question, Russ shakes his head quickly. "No! I mean, yes. You can ward this place. It will keep him out. And drive him crazy. It might even make it take longer for him to reform. But you're going to need a witch or a wizard or a druid." He clears his throat and says, "And I'd be really grateful if you'd key the ward to let me in. This is where I belong. I practically lived here. I died here. And I can be useful. Places with ghosts don't get rats or anything. They don't like us. And I can do what I used to do, keep things running and fix things. And I can do other stuff too. Like travel just about anywhere instantly. And I can have a body when I need to. For a couple of hours anyway." He looks between the living folks present as he makes his case, obviously worried about them destroying the theater or locking him out of it. While others might enjoy Scott's praise, Soo somehow manages to look a bit aloof, his head tilting slightly to one side. "What do you mean I'm not a werewolf? Clearly, I have many canine traits." He turns to lean against a wall, absently cleaning debris from his fingernails, then glancing around. Nope, nobody's buying it. He sighs, playing with a strand of hair absently before pushing it back behind his ear. To Stiles, Soo just gives a Cheshire grin. "Your boyfriend seems to think you're pretty magical. Well, the one I've met, anyway. Which, by the way. Later, after Danny Phantom explains his deal, I want details, okay?" When Ethan's all up in his personal space, he seems to bristle slightly, his expression suddenly becoming closed off and unreadable. "Easy, tiger. Unless you've got the coins, you don't get to play the game." And then, for the first time since he's arrived, Soo looks... uncomfortable. But he's smiling again a second later, albeit a forced smile. "Russell... I don't know these people much but they seem interested in keeping you safe... and they haven't torn me to shreds yet, which is a step up from the /last/ shifter I met, so there's that." Oliver looks disgruntled and sheepish for a moment. "He said destroy the first time, I was just repeating what he said. I wasn't implying we should do it," he says as he looks down at his feet. As Stiles mentions 'mascots' he looks up and catches Stiles looking at -him-. Then Soo is getting sniffed, and apparently not liking it very much. "So..." He leans towards Scott and whispers "Does that mean I'm off the hook?" He indicates Soo with a nod. "Cats are, like, higher up on the list than rabbits aren't they?" His expression is hard to read. Scott looks between Stiles and Ethan. The decision will be between Derek and the twin, but he knows Stiles will throw his two cents in there. He looks back to Russ and says, "Well, I'm sure we can figure out something, dude." He stops short of making any promises. It's not his place to do so. But then he grins and says, "On the other hand, if you can carry cash, you're about to make our movie nights a lot cooler, considering the take-out we can get with your help." Practical to a fault, that's Scott. He nods at Ethan's news and then stands up, looking at Soo and says, "We're not the bad guys. And given that you risked your life to save a guy who's already dead, I'm betting you aren't either. So you're welcome in Beacon Hills, as far as we're concerned." He grins at Oliver and says, "Ollie, you don't have to be around us if we scare you. You have my number, all you have to do is call and somebody will be there to help you. But if you do want to hang with us, that's cool. But you need to get over being afraid of us." "Look, dude," Stiles says to Russ, "Far as I'm concerned, a friendly ghost makes the place more fun. I'll see what Derek things, but... I vote we keep you around." He glances to Scott, shrugs, and says, "I mean, c'mon. What's not cool about that? If this is gonna be our Batcave, it outta at least be /interesting/." He notes Soo's exchanges with the others, but limits his response to a smirk and a nod, "Sure, sounds fair. Can't pretend I mind bragging a little." As for Ollie, he gets a wink. No words, just a wink. He can figure out what it means for himself! "Of course, we're keeping him!" Ethan says, slinging an arm around Russell's shoulders with a grin. "Just like we're keeping the theater and definitely not destroying it, after tying up the majority of our trust fund in it. Plus how cool will it be to have not just a movie palace, but a -haunted- movie palace?" Giving the shoulder a quick squeeze, he suddenly quirks a brow. "Dude, were you kissing a boy in the balcony before the horror show began?" Russ nods happily as the consensus seems to be that he doesn't need exorcising. He's solid and feels ...normal. Body temperature, heart beat and all. The only thing odd is that his scent is faded, as though coming from a person who just left the room in the last few minutes. He says, after a moment, his expression goes from restrained and happy to restrained and mischievous as he says, "No sheets though. I do have some professional standards." At Ethan's question, he nods and blushes a little again. "Tim Greenberg. He was on the football team with me. Back then .... well, things were different." He looks up at the balcony, a wistful expression on his face and then shakes his head. "He had kids. Even grandkids. He brought them here, once. I think remembering me, but he told them it was to see where he spent so much of his time as a boy. Which was true, I guess." Oliver takes note of Stiles' wink but says nothing. Listening to Russell tell his story, he casually turns to Scott. There's something lurking in Oliver's eyes, but its brief and impossible to pinpoint before he assumes a neutral expression. "I'm not 'scared' of you guys. You haven't tried to hurt me, in fact you've all been really nice to me. So that... isn't quite the right word." He looks pointedly at Ethan again for a brief moment, whose arm is wrapped around Russell, then sighs. "I'll just shut up. It's hard to explain, forget I said anything." Walking over to one of the seats, he yells at it "If anyone invisible, or intangible, or whatnot is in this seat... move." And with that he collapses into the chair, looking somewhat disgruntled. Apparently he was starting to adjust to the supernatural bit. If you can't beat em... "They wouldn't be able to catch me, anyway." Soo says with the faintest of smirks, smoothing down his sweater absently. "I'm not bad. But I'm not... normally very aggressive, either. I just don't like seeing people getting hurt." He looks at Russell, his eyes ever so slightly sad. He hugs himself and grins. "Besides. There was a cute boy in trouble. What would Wonder Woman do?" He raises a wrist, pulling back his sleeve... and he's wearing one of those ugly rubber bracelets that has W.W.=W=.D? on one side, with the Wonder Woman logo on the opposite. "Oh, look at the time." He says, even though it's distinctly /not/ a watch. "If I don't get home soon, my aunt will stare disapprovingly at me for like... half an hour, at least. And I am such a delicate flower, I'd just... wilt." He puts his wrist to his forehead, posing dramatically, before heading toward the exit, moving with the faintest of swaying to his walk. It's not so much his hips as it is... he's walking like a cat, kind of meandering along. Scott looks a bit amused at that story and glances sideways at Stiles, mouthing, "Greenberg?!" And then when Ollie speaks he nods and says, "Okay. As long as you're comfortable, we're good." He smiles at Soo and says, "Thanks again. And if you need anything, you know where our secret lair is. Well, our lair, anyway." Stiles shakes his head slowly, meeting Scott's glance and raising his eyebrows. He chuckles a little and nods to Soo, agreeing, "Sounds like good thinking to me." He gives Scott a /see, it's not weird that I compared us to Batman and Robin/ sort of look, clearly feeling pleased with that development. Then, glancing around at all the others, he says, "Okay. This has been officially weird. How about we all knock off and get pizza?" "Grandkids?!" Ethan takes a step back from Russ, looking him up and down again, particularly noting his clothing. "Just how long ago did you live, dude?" He shoots a grin toward Stiles. "Pizza sounds good to me," he says, eyes following Soo's swaying form as he departs. Hey, looking isn't cheating! At Ethan's question, Russ turned to look at him. "Um, I died in 1961. I was born in '45. Just after my dad got home from the war." He shrugs. "It's been a long time. It's what? 2012 now? '14? They all start to blur after a while." He shakes his head at the very flamboyant Soo and smiles a little. "But things change. A lot." Oliver looks up at Scott and nods. "Yeah, you guys are fine. More than fine, even. I've learned more about this stuff in a few days of hanging out with you than I did my entire life in Monterey." Shrugging, he stretches in the chair which causes his shirt to ride up and expose his abdomen briefly. His right leg twitches a bit as he does so, causing his foot to tap the floor a few times rhythmically. When pizza is suggested by Stiles, he stands up. "If you guys don't mind me tagging along... this whole thing has kind of made me hungry."